


Our Garden

by fits_in_frames



Category: The Lord of the Rings (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-02-15
Updated: 2005-02-15
Packaged: 2018-01-21 11:56:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1549646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fits_in_frames/pseuds/fits_in_frames
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When he awoke in Ithilien, he thought he was dead.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Our Garden

**Author's Note:**

> _we're neither pure_  
>  _nor wise, nor good_  
>  _we'll do the best we know_  
>  _we'll build our house_  
>  _and chop our wood_  
>  _and make our garden grow_  
>  {make our garden grow (from _candide_ )}  
> 
> 
> Written for [](http://trilliah.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://trilliah.livejournal.com/)**trilliah**.

When he awoke in Ithilien, he thought he was dead.

Gandalf stood above him with a sad smile on his face. And then his cousins came rushing in, and hugged him and kissed him and told him all about the battles they had fought and the scars they had received. The man, the elf, the dwarf all entered the room, slowly.

When Sam did not follow them in, he knew he was still alive.

He remembered the desperate drawing of breathe, the hand reaching upwards at him. He could see Sam's face and hear Sam's gentle voice, both obscured by the long journey and the intense heat and the pain. _I love you._ They both had known what was going to happen, but only Sam accepted it. _You'll make it back to Bag End, Frodo. An' when you do, promise me somethin'._ (Frodo had nodded so hard that tears splattered on Sam's cheeks.) _Promise me you'll take care of tha' garden. Promise me you won' let it get o'ergrown an' tangled up. Promise me you'll make it grow, strong an' sturdy an' beautiful. If you do nothin' else, make our garden grow._ ("Our garden," Frodo had mouthed, but no sound came out.) And then he was gone.

He did not tell anyone, not his cousins, not Aragorn, not Gandalf, not even Rosie. It was hardest to keep it from her. They both knew they felt the same things for Sam, and so they kept each other company for a couple of years. The words were always on the tip of his tongue, but suddenly one day, she was to be married off and Frodo was alone in Bag End again.

The day she left, he stepped out into the sun, blinking. The flowers and herbs and other plants Frodo didn't recognized had fallen victim to weeds and vines and scores of tiny furry creatures. He walked around back to where some of Sam's clothes still resided. They were far too big for him, but that didn't matter. He knelt in the dirt, unsure where to begin. After pulling out a dozen green and brown things, he came to recognize weed from flower.

He did not eat that day. By dusk, moonflowers had begun to bloom and the grey parasitic vines were gone, all around the house. With tears in his eyes, Frodo planted a handful of seeds (of what, he did not bother to look) in every spot left bare. He stood back, and thought, "I hope I've made you proud, Sam," before stepping inside for the first time since morning. Without undressing, he curled up in a chair near the unlit fireplace, and closed his eyes.

When his cousins found him, stone cold, three days later, he still had the remnants of a smile lingering on his face.


End file.
